He sold burgers for 15 cents; 6 decades later, his Idaho Falls drive-in is still thriving

IDAHO FALLS — Decades before the south end of Idaho Falls was the center of commercial growth, U.S. Highway 91 — now known as Northgate Mile — was the city’s main business hub.

In the early 1960s, the street was home to a variety of shops, including Scotty’s Drive In. The restaurant opened for the first time on Sept. 4, 1964, according to its founder, Jack Magnusson.

Magnusson owned it for 14 years and later launched an ice business with a partner.

The mom-and-pop burger joint at 560 Northgate Mile celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2024. Scott Lynch bought it from the previous owner in 2004 and has owned it ever since.

Magnusson, now 95, lives at Lincoln Court Assisted & Senior Living with his wife, Lavine. EastIdahoNews.com paid him a visit on Monday to talk about the iconic eatery he helped establish.

During the conversation, Magnusson said he still visits the restaurant on occasion and recalled those early years in great detail. When asked how he felt about Scotty’s Drive In still being in operation, Magnusson had this to say: “I must have done something right.”

From small-town grocer to Scotty’s founder

Opening a fast-food restaurant wasn’t something Magnusson set out to do. It was an opportunity that stemmed from his good work ethic and the ability to work well with colleagues. Along the way, Magnusson says he was just happy to have a job and go to work every day.

“I’ve never looked for a job all my life,” says Magnusson.

From the beginning, Scotty’s Drive in was a three-way partnership between Magnusson, Ralph Ward and Harold Greviour.

Magnusson grew up in Gillette, Wyoming, and had worked through the ranks at a local grocery store. Later, he was hired as an assistant manager at a store Ward owned in Billings, Montana.

“I worked in that store for three years. I wasn’t really making any money. I started out making $70 a week,” Magnusson recalls with laughter.

After a brief stint working for Kraft Foods, Magnusson says he moved back to Gillette and was quickly offered a job at the old store where he used to work.

It was around this time that Ward and Greviour approached Magnusson about opening a hamburger restaurant. They pitched the idea of opening a franchise, and at one time, Scotty’s had multiple locations — in Pocatello, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.

Magnusson says he didn’t have enough money to invest in the business at the time, and a good friend loaned him what he needed to get started.

It was Ward and Greviour who came up with the name Scotty’s, according to Magnusson. He isn’t sure where it came from. It would be several decades before a man named Scott Worton would buy the business.

An existing business, Orme Implement Co., was on the Northgate Mile property at the time, and it was demolished to make room for Scotty’s Drive In.

“We started in September, so (business) was kind of slow (at first). To get through the winter, I was selling hamburgers, 10 for $1,” Magnusson says. “We’d get customers in — and then if they bought fries, you made some money.”

In the early years of operation, Magnusson says hamburgers were normally 15 cents, fries and milkshakes were 15 cents, and drinks were 10 cents.

Magnusson says they bought local potatoes to make the French fries.

Over time, Magnusson says it became hard to keep up with customers. On a busy day, they often made 2,600 hamburgers.

Several years after opening Scotty’s Drive In, McDonald’s became a popular chain nationwide. The hamburger giant opened its first Idaho Falls location on Northgate Mile in 1972, according to the Better Business Bureau.

To compete with “Mickey D’s” Big Mac, Magnusson came up with the Great Scott burger, which is still available on Scotty’s menu today.

Through the years, Magnusson says Ward and Greviour didn’t always get along. After about a decade, Ward left Scotty’s and went on to form Waremart, which later became Winco.

Bob Bright, a Post Register employee who was also the night-shift manager at Scotty’s, bought out Ward’s portion of the restaurant and became a partner in the business. During this time, Magnusson says they left the franchise and ran Scotty’s as a standalone diner.

In 1978, Magnusson sold Scotty’s to Farr’s Candy-maker Matt Worton. Magnusson says they made their own ice at Scotty’s. He saw a business opportunity with the ice-making machine and formed M.T. Ice with his friend, Dick Thomas.

Although Magnusson is proud of his association with Scotty’s, he says that had he known how lucrative the ice business would be, he would’ve done that instead.

Worton eventually sold Scotty’s to his son, Scott. Scott Lynch, a family friend, started working there as a high school student in 1993 and bought the business in 2004.

A local staple where customers keep coming back

Lynch says his friendship with the Worton family is what initially prompted him to start working there. His goal was to own a business, and when he learned Scott Worton was planning to sell Scotty’s, he decided to take it over.

After 22 years of ownership, Lynch says he’s worked hard to make the restaurant feel like it’s still 1964, and he’s proud of that accomplishment.

“Keeping Scotty’s what it’s always been … is what we’ve tried to do, and a lot of people appreciate that,” Lynch says.

Eating at Scotty’s has become a generational tradition for many families. Longtime customers are now bringing their children and grandchildren to the diner, which Lynch says is very satisfying.

Lynch says it’s a joy to continue the legacy that Magnusson started, and he plans to keep serving customers for as long as he can.

“They all have their memory of Scotty’s, and we want to keep that going,” he says. “Hopefully, we keep providing that local staple in town where people enjoy coming to remember their childhood.”

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